I agree. And the gambit system was way better than people gave it credit for. I still thought it was way more involved than FFXIII's battle system, and had a MUCH better story.
@@SarahsKnight0 ehh I disagree it's kinda convoluted and hard to wrap your head around at first and the game does a horrible job explaining it. Than when you do get the hang of it you realize that all your doing is programming the game to play itself. Like I just fought the final boss last night on the switch version and I probably could have walked away and just let it play out by itself and I would have won.
@@mariovssonic184 1. Only if you don't pay attention. 2. That's bullshit, because literally the only way that'll happen is if you have an online guide telling you what Gambits to use and even then you can still get fucked over
557deadpool it’s really not bullshit at all. I just had Vann and Balthier wack the crap out of everything while Ashe spammed Healing magic with Vann stepping in to heal when Ashe couldn’t. The game can easily do that completely by it self with the gambits.
@@mariovssonic184 Yeah but the Gambit system was a little bullshit at times. I tried to stay away from it other than bare bones crap like auto attack. I don't think it's a bad system, at all but I just think it's too easily abused. The problem is you could plug the Gambit system into any RPG and it'd be broken AF. But it's a great system for quality of life stuff.
i never put that together... i've played the game through like 9-times and I never realized the bike Fran is driving in the palace escape crashes because Vaan has the nethicite.
I fucking loved this game, the world, the soundtrack, the Esper summons and even the sometimes over complex story. At least it had a proper story unlike the games that followed it.
In my opinion FF12 has the most mature story of all final fantasies I played. All in all this game is really underrated. I wish they would make more games in the Ivalice world, it's probably my favourite...
Well armor made like that is usually accompanied by a helmet. The very fact that the Prince isn't wearing a helmet is stupid. And that's why he got shot. The way its portrayed is deus ex machia. It's for plot. But also so you can see important characters. Lots of games do this with armor and cloaks. Once a character is introduced helmets are rarely worn to avoid confusion. And in this game a lot of scoobydo moments occur where helmets are taken off for dramatic appeal.
ussco It's still new not yet a classic, they're saving the best for the last, FFVI, FFVII, FFIX, there are still the older ones waiting. Plus, you do know that FFXII put a hole in SquareEnix pocket they had to fire several team members before the release back in 06. It's too risky. I don't think the graphics needs an upgrade, too, at the moment.
ussco talk about fanservice :) Judges are awesome! Everytime I see a well-done Judge cosplay, it's an automatic win at a Con. Damn. Even I wanted the suit.
It's crazy to think, but after watching this video and realizing XII's story as a whole, maybe Venat was really the good guy, as it was trying to stop the Ocurians' puppet stringing of the mortal races by having the stones destroyed once and for all.
This is what I call great writing. Whether it's the plot, characters or dialogues, FFXII was peerless. FFXII also has the best job system I have ever seen in any video-game, but too few people have experienced it. I hope a lot of people will purchase The Zodiac Age for that reason.
What do you mean with the job system? From what I remember there weren't really any jobs. Found that a bit dissapointing, none of the characters really was strong or weak in any area and with the licensing system you got way too many licenses for each character so every character would know almost every ability. What I absolutely loved about FFXII was the gambit system. Just every RPG should allow you to control your companions like that.
finalfantasy.wikia.com/wiki/Final_Fantasy_XII#International_Zodiac_Job_System If you liked FFXII, you owe it to yourself to play this version; it's just ten times better. If you have no way of playing it on PS2 or emulator, a remastered PS4 version is coming out in a few months dubbed The Zodiac Age.
OMG! It's all I ever wanted! :D Dang, I dont' have a PS4. Perhaps an emulator then. Real job system, more gambits and maybe altered stats means there can be more of a difference between characters?
FFXII IZJS was only released in Japan, but there's an English patch that's really easy to find on the internet. The stats between characters don't differ so much that who you pick to be what class will have a significant impact, but the stats between jobs are drastically different.
+James G Lox Yeah, the open world, the license board (giving many of the benefits of the sphere grid without the mis-steps like the additional cost to change your mind), even the gambit system was an improvement on X/X-2 where you could literally wrap some rubber-bands around the controller to hold the correct buttons down and come back the next day having earned a lot of levels - at least XII was upfront about how much decision-making actually takes place during most combat... Lots of places where it improved on earlier games. On the other hand, the plot is arguably over-complicated, particularly when unfolded slowly over 50-something hours of gameplay, with players needing to be able to identify a character they may not have seen for a week or more of real time and remember their tangled motivations (or claimed motivations) in order to understand the subtle clues to their actual motivations as revealed in the latest cutscene... And there's no Triple Triad; no Blitzball; no Gold Saucer; no Chocobo Hot and Cold - no minigame to provide a contrast to the core mechanics of combat and exploration - the only side quests (at least the only ones I can remember) are fetch quests and hunt quests (and fetch quests that are hunt quests). Then there are the treasure mechanics - randomly appearing chests that are only there some of the time, and most times they appear, only containing an inferior item, or money - most notoriously, the Zodiac Spear chest with a 10% appearance rate, 10% item rate (rather than up to 20 gil), and, if you have the right accessory equipped, 10% chance of the item being a Zodiac Spear rather than a Megalixir... Or you can also get a Zodiac Spear as a one-off by deliberately not opening 4 otherwise unexceptional chests during the game and then opening one particular one-time chest without the "find rare items in chests" accessory equipped. In other words, anyone with a Zodiac Spear either got incredibly lucky, or got pretty lucky and was semi-incompetent in exploration and looting, or used a guide - anyone with more than one either got incredibly lucky or put a lot of time into obtaining them (an expected 2000 visits to the reappearing chest, and picking up the "easy" one, or 3000 visits)
rmsgrey, the plot isnt over-complicated. Is just fine for more mature public, it has the points of war located conflicts and the consequences of each individuals actions. Having to remenber character's reason after a week thou say? Well, do thee forget people that frequently? I wouldnt, remenbering people and their motivations might get thou the upperhand, or, forgeting, the disgrace of life. Living isnt anyway easy.Thats an aspect well present in that game.
Why would you not mention Matsuno's name? He created this most of this game his writing is all over it! It's a shame he never gets the credit he deserves. This game is a classic along with Vagrant story and Final Fantasy Tactics.
Even watching this the talking is so fast I can't keep up with the story. It's crazy how much bigger the story is in 12 compared to 15 which was in development for 10 years
I am so glad this game is getting the love it deserves. I used to get such crap whenever I said this was my favorite mainline final fantasy game back in the day
@@aznericxD OK idk what makes you think this "joke" about the character names is funny, but it was already unfunny when you started and now that you just keep doing the same joke it's now just sad. It's like SNL when Trump got elected
+Caffeinated Koopa I thought they dumped that idea. I'm so pissed off that my copy of ff12 does not work anymore. It is so hard to come by here in Finland. There are sold some used copies but they are in horrible shape.
aleksi häkli Well, I use my PS3 controller, so the controls are just like the original. Any controller will work on PCSX2 though. If you don't have one, you can customize the keyboard however you like.
My favorite FF. A beautiful masterpiece of a game with an elaborate story and a lore rich world! Felt like the remaster was an awesome gift for having to put up with so many haters over the years lmao
+Paolo Ibayan Vaan would have been fine with a few changes. Like better English VA, confirmation of the idea that he was also being manipulated by the Occuria, being less snotty, etc.
It's amazing how good this game looks when running on an emulator that could give it the horse power it deserved. It was pretty gritty looking on the PS2.
oh fo sho!! I played the emulated IZJV and it was so sharp and clear, as of writing this, I still have the emulation AND the Steam version of Zodiac Age, but for some reason the legit PC just didn't seem to quite have the sharpness in the reflections on the save crystals etc...that the emulator could...but everything else is awesome!!
I remember Me and a buddy spending an entire summer trying to 100% the whole game. Our craziest day was definitely when we spent a few hours mapping out Giruvegan, and making a copy so we both had it. If only i knew of Gamefaqs I would have uploaded onto there for everyone to use. That and the four and a half hour fight with Yiazmat
Hands down this is the best FF for me, i just love Ivalice man...the World building, the Atmosphere, the Races, the Environment, the History, the Bestiary entry.... It's all click for me, i hopes future FF will bring back the Ivalice Union
Excellent video! One of if not the favourite FF for me of all the time! I was what... 18 when this came out... Kept me out of clubs for better or worse :P Very special game to my heart!
no, it wasn't a good story, nor an overly good game, if you want an underated ff game, look to crystal chronicles but, the words overrated and underrated are extremely overused.
Bjorick it has some of the best game mechanics I ever seen in a final fantasy game. Also the hints are fun the world feels like it has a history. I do think his comment is valid.
@@Bjorick Hahah.. did you just compare chrystal chronicles to FFXII?! MADNESS!. The story, characters, replay value, hidden secrets, weapons, armors, gambits, magicks, areas, tips, tricks, depth of this game is INCOMPARABLE to any other FF game.
Playing it on PCSX2 as well. I started playing last week, I have about 50 hours logged in on my rerun. Are you playing the vanilla version or the IZJS?
i guess vanilla, after i downloaded the original, i remembered there was the zodiac job system too. how is that one? and also- how r ur graphics looking?
I finished vanilla ages ago so went with IZJS for my rerun. I'd have to say that I find this version more to my liking than vanilla, the tweaks made the game better IMO. As far as the graphics, it's definitely better looking that the PS2 version although I don't know if my settings are configured to give me the best possible visuals. I didn't mess with it too much.
I tried playing this when it first came out but couldn't get into it. Finished ZA Remaster when that released a few years ago but honestly I couldn't tell you anything about the story or characters. I found it all so forgettable. I'm curious to give it another go but I'm not sure if it'll have any more impact a third time around. I'm going to watch this and see if it can motivate me to give it another go.
Well, I just watched the whole thing, and that is a pretty fantastic summary. The only mistakes I noticed were that you said mateus was female and the esper of water (male, and esper of ice. Only looks female because he has a captured goddess permanently strapped to him), and that vanat possesses vayne and Bergan. He may possess vayne in the final fight, but before that there is no real possession going on. But, these are tiny little nitpicks from a git who has 8 playthroughs of the game, and certainly doesn't detract from the overall video. Fantastic, glad I watched.
This was the first FF game I ever owned. Every other I've played has been borrowed or I played on an emulator. At the time, I found the story to be sort of... eh. I don't think I had much of an appreciation for politically-charged stories. While I still don't think the story is amazing or great by any means, I've certainly come to appreciate it a bit more. Because I actually owned a copy of this game, I spent more time playing it than any other FF game before it. I had my few gripes with the story but hoooly shit was I really into the world. It seemed so alive and interesting. Some of the politics may have gone over my head but I sure felt like the world had a history to it. It also helped that it had a pretty huge world. I recall a few times when I wandered into a cave and wish I hadn't (higher level enemies whooped my ass). Another time, I wandered in a bit too deep and found myself fighting against Adrammelech, the electric flying goat esper. I remember being scared cause I had gone in too deep, had few items, and was desperate for a way out. I managed to beat the boss and get out of there but boy did that experience stick with me. I feel like that's a thing not a lot of JRPGs do exceedingly well: creating a world with a sense of history behind it, a dangerous world that you are thrown into, where stepping into the wrong areas at the wrong time can get you killed. Anyways, as I'm typing this, I'm patiently waiting for my copy of FFXII HD. I haven't played this game since its release and I'm itching to be immersed in its world once more.
This is my favorite Final Fantasy game ever and my 2nd favorite RPG of all, best only by Chrono Trigger. This game is amazingly epic and I LOVED the story, the narrative and dialogue. The combat is great and very customizable, the graphics ARE (still) AMAZING, and the voice acting is absolutely divine, every conversation is so natural, everyone takes their time to talk and nothing feels rushed, cringed or force (like it happens every 5 seconds in FF7 Remake)
A good recap. I played it faithfully up to the Pharos and the long playtime to get to that point in the game kept me from trying again to finish it. Thanks for recapping the last third.
I think this game was far too underrated. I think a large reason for that was because it focused heavily on politics, unlike the other games, which are largely driven by a primary romance plot. To me, this game’s story was superb. The characters felt more real and relatable to me than really than in the other games, and I loved the genuine medieval renaissance feel to the world. While Vaan is generally considered the main character because he’s who you run around as, he really isn’t. It’s just that we’re looking at the story through his perspective. And while he’s a generally bland character, I can understand why the creators chose him. If you’re going to force a player into a vast world with a complex history, lore, politics, and characters, you need someone that is largely ignorant to provide adequate exposition scenes.
See? Your intro said it all. All! Widest open map, depth story for each character, a lot of non-linear sidequests, detailed monster spawn, detailed "auto" battle system (unlike the simplified one used on FFXIII), weather, the dynamic market with some items that can only be around if you sell certain loots, and anything you said. You can also stupidly read and study all the overly rich detail of everything; items, marks/monster, places, anything had detail. I did, completely, and joyfully, even on my second 140-hours gameplay! It is fun, and I respect the efforts! And the stupid fans said it is this bad or that bad, fuck them right? Every single Final Fantasy game is an experiment, yes, since the third series. And when the greatest lover master of fantasy die-hard RPG guru "fans" said this game is a stupid garbage junk trash of rat vomit, SE release the super simplified FFXIII, EAT THAT, FANS!!!
Found your channel today. I like your channel :). Half a year ago I was playing FF12 IZJS and due to studies put it down. But now that summer came I intend to continue my save file. SO hopefully this video of yours would help me catch on with the plot. Keep it up!
Had to watch this, forgot everything since I stopped playing long ago, and just realized that I was at about the 20min mark of this video in the game. I was supposed to go back and finish it in game but this video summary of the story kept me so interested that I had to finish it right away in video form, thanks for this, such a great ending.
AWESOME video! Wow... Honestly I have only watched a bit less than half of it (around 14 minutes) as that is as much as I've played (in the Zodiac Age version, but it still fits). But it serves as a GREAT refresher of events, should I wish to continue playing at some point in the future. I've enjoyed your videos in the past, Oni, but only now subscribed. I wish you great success in the future, and hope you are doing well!
This is my 4th most beloved game in the series. It was the most innovative and enjoyable RPG experience I've had in my childhood. And let's be real, this is the closest thing to a mature story this series has ever had.
Is it just me, or does Final Fantasy XII have a few parallels with the story of Star Wars? Bahamut = Death Star Cid & Balthier = I am your father, although Balthier already knew, so its more Ben and Han than Luke and Anakin Vayne(controlled by Venat) = Vader(Palpatine) Ashe = Padme Rasler's Ghost = Force Ghost
Nabradia is also clearly based on Naboo, especially the opening scene. Then you've got the presence of bounty hunters, the Judges who are all superficially reminiscent of Darth Vader, the resistance the Empire etc
Actually: Mateas is male (and thus a he, not a she, or at least some bizarre divine intersex.) In rebellion with the gods, he captured a goddess and strapped to his chest as armor. He took her in hopes that the gods would spare him so as to save her, but instead they sealed them both, cursing the goddess to eternal imprisonment. Movements of the goddess's head during her appearances in FFXII and Revenant Wings seem to indicate that Mateus and his captured goddess have become one entity. God I love this game. Every little thing is dripping with backstory!
Basch was supposed to be the main protagonist, but square felt that a man in his late thirties wouldn't go over well with fans so Vaan was conceved as a replacement very late in the games development if I'm remembering correctly.
Mustadio Bunansa Plus they wanted to tell the story from a different perspective, in this case, vaan is the character with no significant, hes just a character who witness whats going on.
Like they kinda did with Nier gestalt & replicant. People may not like the game mechanics but the characters are likeable and the music is a masterpiece.
from being a ffxi addict this is my favorite FF. loved it when it came out, it knocked ff6 off my #1 list. always wished they used this combat system for future games too
Thanks for this video! I've been coming back to it multiple times between play sessions to make sure I didn't forget anything, going further in the video every time I watch. I guess I'm about 2/3 into the story now! It's hard stopping every time to avoid spoilers haha
I know its an old video, but what would have been nice is if you spelled out some of these names and places on screen. I didn't understand half of what was said since the names are all unusual and are hard to keep track of if you didn't already know them.
This game is so much better than it's often given credit for. I remember back when it first came out and a lot of people hated the combat system, but I always thought it was pretty engaging and refreshing as it's cool to see such ingenuity. The graphics both in-game and during cutscenes to this day are dazzling to behold and although I'm sure some would disagree with me I actually like Vaan as a character even though he gets a lot of flack since his involvement isn't as a singular protagonist. I think it's pretty cool that he was one of many protagonists as opposed to his story being paramount over the other characters journeying with him. If anything he was the guy tagging along with more prominent characters and I thought that was kind of cool. I also like that he isn't your traditional hero, starting off as a pickpocketing street thief forced into petty crime to make ends meet due to the injustices of the world around him and the loss of the only family he had left. As for other aspects of the game I like, I thought the emphasis of political scheming and the characters therein competing for control were all fascinating as I love seeing that kind of intrigue being used to further develop the setting and the plot. There's a lot to love in this game.
Replaying older games has thought me i really didnt understand much of war and politics.....tis only years later i fully appraciate the level of detail put into this game.
becouse he is not important to the overall story, some people also find him annoying for some reason. what people fail to realise is that vaan is more of a viewpoint character, and final fantasy fans often don't see the beauty in playing as more of a support character. I loved that... also, this game is not very liked in general, and haters often are very vocal about their dislikes, and search for every little thing to nitpick on, so that also doesn't help vaans popularity.
+Eddie Iler I disagree, Ashe is the main character. Vaan is a very appropriate viewpoint character as being just a tag along. He is the most overpowered of the lot, however, as a strange consequence of also being the viewpoint lead. Moby Dick has a non-consequential viewpoint narrator as well.....
I loved the esper mechanic of this game its refreshing to have new summons and the gambit system/job system stressed a new type of thought process for combat.
If you're looking to get the story on games you never got to play, this is a great way to catch up and sometimes get the urge to want to actually play the game lol
I saw my brother completing this game in both japanese and english versions. It was the only FF of the PS2 generation I never played. I feel like I missed a lot. I'm sure aiming to play FFXII in a near future.
Best Final Fantasy game I have ever played. Just recently started playing again since I have some free time - but this time I'm trying out international zodiac job system.
I played the game but only until the "bunny village" (or whatever the name is) then my banking work got crazy and was never able to play it again. This was 8 years ago so its great to have some kind of closure to my unfinished game. Thanks for the video!
Vaan is really annoying at first and a lot of people, usually those without a ton of experience with the game, feel like he steals the spotlight as the "main character" from others they think would be more interesting. On a first playthrough the main words that spring to mind for most of us when thinking of Vaan are "why" and "ugh." He seems useless, vestigial, annoying. You don't know why he's there. It seems like he doesn't even know why he's there. In many ways though, that's Vaan's character. He's lost. He's an orphan whose family and future were taken for him by poor circumstance and then subsequently beaten down by a military occupation. He's stuck in a dead-end life with the only thing keeping him going being the others in the same situation who look up to him and a distant, seemingly unreachable dream of one day escaping from it all to ride the wind as a sky pirate. One of the most important things to remember about Vaan when critiquing his character is that he's a kid. He's 17, he's a fucking baby by real world standards. And I feel he's pretty accurately portrayed in this regard. Think back about how shitty you were at life when you were a kid his age, even if you thought you were cool at the time. If you're not far enough away from it yet to tell, give it some time. Vaan is impressionable, indecisive, unsure of his course of actions, and when he tries to be impulsive he often chooses the option that ends badly or gets him in trouble. He's a noob. He kinda sucks. But give him a break, he's a kid man. In fact, it's kind of a refreshing change from the typical generic JRPG protagonist who acts like he's 25 but oh nah man, it's totally a 16 year old pulling all this badass shit and having the answer to everything. This is how you see most of the other party members regard him. He says or does something dumb and they're just like, "smh Vaan" and move on, because they kind of understand. Vaan's still growing up. One of the coolest things is how Balthier is a role model to him, more or less the actualized version of the person he's always dreamed about being. Now as for his role in the story it's been confused and mixed up a lot, even by the Squenix people (Ashe should have been the Dissidia rep). The simplest comparison is to go with Star Wars because of the myriad of other similarities there already are. Vaan is the R2-D2 of FFXII. He's the little guy that goes around discovering menial tidbits and unraveling threads and accidentally setting huge events into motion that the other "main players" act upon. (For reference to the rest of the cast: Penelo is C3-P0, Basch is Obi-Wan, Gabranth is Darth Vader, Ashe is a combination of both Luke and Leia, Balthier is Han, and Fran is sexy Chewbacca) Anyways, I think the major sticking point that got so many people mad about Vaan being chosen as the "main character" is that he's the one you control in towns. This is an issue of bias taking hold. In the majority the previous FF games, you controlled the main character on the field screen in basically every area, barring a few exceptions where they temporarily left the party. So people inherently applied this to FFXII under the assumption that the game had to follow the same rules. This is not the case. The reason you control Vaan in towns is not because he's the most important character or primary focus of the story, but because he is performing his role in the party of the streetear, the information gatherer, the envoy to the common people, the errand boy. Think about the activities you actually perform while being forced to control Vaan. You're running around talking to normal NPCs, gathering tidbits, picking up sidequests, going shopping for new items and equipment. This is the kind of busywork that would be relegated to Vaan, it's what he's good at. Furthermore, think about the other members of the party. Several of them are famous, and all four of the adults have prices on their heads. They would be laying low and keeping to themselves in these big cities, but even in the neutral areas it's more an issue of them simply not being bothered with doing that kind of thing. They all have bigger things on their plates that Vaan doesn't, and Vaan is happy to take care of this stuff as a way of being useful. And once you get literally anywhere that isn't one of these towns you can control whomever you want to. And in the overwhelming majority of cutscenes where the story and important conversations happen, including the ones in towns, Vaan very much takes a backseat with most of his interaction amounting to more or less the same as an interjectory bleep-bloop-bloop from Artoo
Vaan (and Penelo) represent the future. Potential. Basch, Gabranth, and Fran are the players of yesterday. Ashe, Balthier, and Vayne are the players of today. Vaan, Penelo, and Larsa are the players of tomorrow. And the reason Vaan is so integral to the party isn't necessarily because of anything he says or does, or the tasks he performs like I outlined above: it's simply his presence. Vaan creates context. He helps Ashe maintain perspective of where her true duty as a queen lies, of what it really means to rule. Like I said, Vaan is impressionable. Ashe's entire journey has been colored by revenge, of wanting to pay back the Empire for the terrible wrongs it's wrought upon her and all of Dalmasca. It's what drew Vaan to join her quest in the first place. He's suffered as she has for the same reasons. And this all comes to a head atop the Pharos Aerie, where she makes the choice that defines all of history to come. As Gabranth faces them down and goads them into taking vengeance on him for his murder of Ashe's father and Vaan's brother, Ashe feels all her hatred and rage seething within her and wants nothing more than to strike him down, take his life, and then move on to the rest of Archadia next. And then she looks over at Vaan and sees her own reflection. And she understands. She sees this dumb kid who's been looking up to his queen on the entire journey, who's mirrored her own desire for revenge. "Dalmasca does not forget kindness, nor ill deed done. With sword in hand she aids her allies. Sword in hand, she lays to rest her foes. This nethicite I hold must be my sword. I will avenge those who have died. And the Empire will know remorse." Ashe realizes in this single moment that she's inadvertently been teaching Vaan to perpetuate the cycle of hatred forward forever, and that by doing this she's setting the tone for the future of Dalmasca. It's instantly clarified, and she knows what she has to do. She lets go. FFXII is ultimately a game about letting go of the past and starting anew, of not letting past deeds weigh down one's actions, of learning to forgive and rebuild a new future. Ashe finally comes to understand that her hatred brings her nothing but sorrow, and she instead offers forgiveness. And Vaan changes alongside her, because she's taught him to see it as well. Vaan's day was yet to come in FFXII. He was kind of a nerd. We see only a glint of potential in him. But he learned a lot over the events of the game. It ends with his dream becoming a reality and taking to the skies. Now one of the coolest things in the entire FF series is when you play FFTA2 after FFXII, and Vaan and Penelo show up older. Vaan has transformed. He's confident and cool, a bona fide sky pirate. They intentionally make his first line to the protagonist the same as Balthier's first line to him in FFXII. The transformation is complete. He's all grown up. It's so fucking cool man. And it was all because the real main characters of FFXII gave some dumb kid a chance, kept him around so he could follow his dreams. tl;dr: Give Vaan a break , he's just a fuckin kid. He's trying his best, and when he grows up he'll be cooler than you are.
Great videos man...You are doing someting that i only thought about for years...esume longs stories so you could recap and undestand the parts of the game that were kinda foggy to comprehension. Thanks a lot and congrats. I`ll do my best to share your work around.
I've played FF12 more than any other Final Fantasy, including 7 and 9, and after about eight or so 100% Order of Ambrosia runs. I still have absolutely no idea wtf even happens in regard to story. All I know about the story is that Balthier is awesome, Ashe is power-hungry or something, and Vaan and Penelo have no real reason to exist.
Please note in this game, they say Marquis as 'Mar-kwiss' ON PURPOSE. It's simply part of the world setting.
Marquis is how they say it in England. The way people typically say it in the US is more like the French pronunciation.
That's what SE gets for hiring English voice actors all the time.
In France it's pronounced maquis, and also in star trek dipu supeesu nain
huh?
@@The_Gallowglassno they don't
This story is infinitely more complicated than 12 year old me realized.
Yea maybe when you were 12 buts it’s not that hard to understand
related lol
@IntrovertedSmiles It wasn't trash it's just different than what we're used to. It's a plot driven narrative. Not a character one.
Right!? I was in my thirties when I played it but I was drunk most of the time. I had no idea all of this had happened.
@IntrovertedSmiles the story was why i really love it, along with those playboy bunnies (vieras)
"I'm Captain Basch! Don't listen to Ondore's lies! I'm Captain Basch Von Rosenburgh of Dalmasca!"
Knox omg the memories lol
That was a TEDIOUS part of the game...
@@russwaddel08 still not as bad as Ashley in resident evil 4
The only bit I remembered well...
I can hear Vann's voice whenever I see that. Also being able to pronounce all these names lol.
When you load a random save and forget what the heck's going on and end up trying to quickening spam all the bosses
I just want to point out two things:
-How amazing this game looked, and still looks, to this day.
-How well this game was summarized... great job
FF12 was overlooked because it came out so late in the PS2's life cycle. It really is an extremely good game.
I agree. And the gambit system was way better than people gave it credit for. I still thought it was way more involved than FFXIII's battle system, and had a MUCH better story.
@@SarahsKnight0 ehh I disagree it's kinda convoluted and hard to wrap your head around at first and the game does a horrible job explaining it. Than when you do get the hang of it you realize that all your doing is programming the game to play itself. Like I just fought the final boss last night on the switch version and I probably could have walked away and just let it play out by itself and I would have won.
@@mariovssonic184 1. Only if you don't pay attention.
2. That's bullshit, because literally the only way that'll happen is if you have an online guide telling you what Gambits to use and even then you can still get fucked over
557deadpool it’s really not bullshit at all. I just had Vann and Balthier wack the crap out of everything while Ashe spammed Healing magic with Vann stepping in to heal when Ashe couldn’t. The game can easily do that completely by it self with the gambits.
@@mariovssonic184 Yeah but the Gambit system was a little bullshit at times. I tried to stay away from it other than bare bones crap like auto attack. I don't think it's a bad system, at all but I just think it's too easily abused. The problem is you could plug the Gambit system into any RPG and it'd be broken AF. But it's a great system for quality of life stuff.
i never put that together... i've played the game through like 9-times and I never realized the bike Fran is driving in the palace escape crashes because Vaan has the nethicite.
maxdecphoenix weird I realised that straight away. I probably missed stuff that u noticed. People absorb info differently I suppose
i just noticed that this week after playing the game 3 times
14 hrs in and I can barely remember their names
@@aznericxD sounds like a YOU problem
@@aznericxD I played this game and... Same. I could never remember all the names thrown in this game.
I actually like Vaan. He is relateable. He has no idea whats going on and is learning as he goes. Just like we are, as the player.
That part when he asked Fran how old she was, they told him to grow up, hilarious. Till this day I have no idea how she is
@@Arikaiden I still have no idea of why is such a big deal to ask women their age..
Like a newbie employee, just doing his job with minding anything as long they are get paid.. hmm..
No you dont. Its ok, hes an awful character. A child idiot.
@@kellengoerger451 I mean so is Tidus?
I fucking loved this game, the world, the soundtrack, the Esper summons and even the sometimes over complex story.
At least it had a proper story unlike the games that followed it.
I totally agree ! I'd just say "the Esper BATTLE (not the summon)" haha !
haaaah XII was wonderful !
In my opinion FF12 has the most mature story of all final fantasies I played. All in all this game is really underrated.
I wish they would make more games in the Ivalice world, it's probably my favourite...
I think FFT was a bit more mature, but it looks like all will pale in comparison to FF16 now.
I like how Lord Rassler is the first Final Fantasy character to die due to outfit design. His armor had an opening specifically where the arrow hit.
Well armor made like that is usually accompanied by a helmet.
The very fact that the Prince isn't wearing a helmet is stupid. And that's why he got shot.
The way its portrayed is deus ex machia. It's for plot. But also so you can see important characters.
Lots of games do this with armor and cloaks. Once a character is introduced helmets are rarely worn to avoid confusion. And in this game a lot of scoobydo moments occur where helmets are taken off for dramatic appeal.
Most underrated FF of all time.
And has became a template for the later game such as XIV : ARR.
***** not yet, we just had XII : Zodiac Job Sytem/International. Maybe later, even though I doubt it, because it is unpopular.
ussco It's still new not yet a classic, they're saving the best for the last, FFVI, FFVII, FFIX, there are still the older ones waiting. Plus, you do know that FFXII put a hole in SquareEnix pocket they had to fire several team members before the release back in 06. It's too risky. I don't think the graphics needs an upgrade, too, at the moment.
ussco talk about fanservice :) Judges are awesome! Everytime I see a well-done Judge cosplay, it's an automatic win at a Con. Damn. Even I wanted the suit.
ussco Oh I do need to mention that in International Zodiac Job System, you can actually fight all 5 judges :D
Even FFXV is adapting this game's Gambit system
It's crazy to think, but after watching this video and realizing XII's story as a whole, maybe Venat was really the good guy, as it was trying to stop the Ocurians' puppet stringing of the mortal races by having the stones destroyed once and for all.
This is what I call great writing. Whether it's the plot, characters or dialogues, FFXII was peerless.
FFXII also has the best job system I have ever seen in any video-game, but too few people have experienced it. I hope a lot of people will purchase The Zodiac Age for that reason.
I will be I've been waiting on this!
What do you mean with the job system? From what I remember there weren't really any jobs. Found that a bit dissapointing, none of the characters really was strong or weak in any area and with the licensing system you got way too many licenses for each character so every character would know almost every ability. What I absolutely loved about FFXII was the gambit system. Just every RPG should allow you to control your companions like that.
finalfantasy.wikia.com/wiki/Final_Fantasy_XII#International_Zodiac_Job_System
If you liked FFXII, you owe it to yourself to play this version; it's just ten times better. If you have no way of playing it on PS2 or emulator, a remastered PS4 version is coming out in a few months dubbed The Zodiac Age.
OMG! It's all I ever wanted! :D Dang, I dont' have a PS4. Perhaps an emulator then. Real job system, more gambits and maybe altered stats means there can be more of a difference between characters?
FFXII IZJS was only released in Japan, but there's an English patch that's really easy to find on the internet.
The stats between characters don't differ so much that who you pick to be what class will have a significant impact, but the stats between jobs are drastically different.
Basically the Game of Thrones of Final Fantasy.
Jacen Solo More the Star Wars. You want GoT try Tactics. It's still debated if the main character is the villain
well, same for 12 really. many think ashe is the villain
Game of thrones, Star Wars and Lord of the Rings :p
I consider Vaan being the main character an act of villainy ;P
That would be Final Fantasy Tactics
I can't be the only one who like Final Fantasy 12 as a game there was so much to it other than its story it had bunch of great features as an RPG
+James G Lox I like the game too.
+djmeagaaim17 IKR it's has tons of great content well with the exception of Yezmat or whatever it's called 50million HP is just to much
+James G Lox Yeah, the open world, the license board (giving many of the benefits of the sphere grid without the mis-steps like the additional cost to change your mind), even the gambit system was an improvement on X/X-2 where you could literally wrap some rubber-bands around the controller to hold the correct buttons down and come back the next day having earned a lot of levels - at least XII was upfront about how much decision-making actually takes place during most combat... Lots of places where it improved on earlier games.
On the other hand, the plot is arguably over-complicated, particularly when unfolded slowly over 50-something hours of gameplay, with players needing to be able to identify a character they may not have seen for a week or more of real time and remember their tangled motivations (or claimed motivations) in order to understand the subtle clues to their actual motivations as revealed in the latest cutscene...
And there's no Triple Triad; no Blitzball; no Gold Saucer; no Chocobo Hot and Cold - no minigame to provide a contrast to the core mechanics of combat and exploration - the only side quests (at least the only ones I can remember) are fetch quests and hunt quests (and fetch quests that are hunt quests).
Then there are the treasure mechanics - randomly appearing chests that are only there some of the time, and most times they appear, only containing an inferior item, or money - most notoriously, the Zodiac Spear chest with a 10% appearance rate, 10% item rate (rather than up to 20 gil), and, if you have the right accessory equipped, 10% chance of the item being a Zodiac Spear rather than a Megalixir... Or you can also get a Zodiac Spear as a one-off by deliberately not opening 4 otherwise unexceptional chests during the game and then opening one particular one-time chest without the "find rare items in chests" accessory equipped. In other words, anyone with a Zodiac Spear either got incredibly lucky, or got pretty lucky and was semi-incompetent in exploration and looting, or used a guide - anyone with more than one either got incredibly lucky or put a lot of time into obtaining them (an expected 2000 visits to the reappearing chest, and picking up the "easy" one, or 3000 visits)
+James G Lox ha, i loved that battle, so epic
rmsgrey, the plot isnt over-complicated. Is just fine for more mature public, it has the points of war located conflicts and the consequences of each individuals actions. Having to remenber character's reason after a week thou say? Well, do thee forget people that frequently? I wouldnt, remenbering people and their motivations might get thou the upperhand, or, forgeting, the disgrace of life.
Living isnt anyway easy.Thats an aspect well present in that game.
Why would you not mention Matsuno's name? He created this most of this game his writing is all over it! It's a shame he never gets the credit he deserves. This game is a classic along with Vagrant story and Final Fantasy Tactics.
Sounds like you're a general fan of Matsuno, I didn't like tactics tbh
Even watching this the talking is so fast I can't keep up with the story. It's crazy how much bigger the story is in 12 compared to 15 which was in development for 10 years
I had to slow it down to .75 to understand. I love this game
Bad logic. Like really. The ammount how long something is made has nothing to do with how complicated and long the story will be lol
balthier and fran for life
I like the sarcastic subtle barbs they throw quietly at times to each other throughout the game...
@@guyincognito7771 never notice
Yea the banter each other I love it lol
Banter and cmon its a bunny girl. Big yes all round
only problem with the game is Van's funky abs
Google says, "Did you mean the only problem with the game is Vaan?"
Oh my fucking god
Fixed in HD remake thankfully!
better then yuna's 30 inch wide finger nails in ffx HD *shudders*
Vaan was fine he just got a bit annoying and whiny like a temporary Tidus
I am so glad this game is getting the love it deserves. I used to get such crap whenever I said this was my favorite mainline final fantasy game back in the day
It's one of the best games I've ever played
Really hope we get a *proper* sequel to it one day, but I'm keeping my hopes low
I swear I thought this Larsa was a woman...
TheYvesL who’s Larsa?...
@@aznericxD OK idk what makes you think this "joke" about the character names is funny, but it was already unfunny when you started and now that you just keep doing the same joke it's now just sad.
It's like SNL when Trump got elected
Same here!
I think it's time to dust off the PS2 and play this game again.
+Caffeinated Koopa I thought they dumped that idea. I'm so pissed off that my copy of ff12 does not work anymore. It is so hard to come by here in Finland. There are sold some used copies but they are in horrible shape.
+aleksi häkli If you have a half decent computer, you can play it on PCSX2. Much better than the PS2 version.
aaron Oh right! Emulators do exist! How good the controls are and are they optimizable?
aleksi häkli Well, I use my PS3 controller, so the controls are just like the original. Any controller will work on PCSX2 though. If you don't have one, you can customize the keyboard however you like.
their re-mastering this in 2017 on PS4 (Final Fantasy XII The Zodiac Age)
My favorite FF. A beautiful masterpiece of a game with an elaborate story and a lore rich world! Felt like the remaster was an awesome gift for having to put up with so many haters over the years lmao
If they told the story using the perspective of Balthier, instead of Vaan, the story will be more interesting.
get over it
+Paolo Ibayan Vaan would have been fine with a few changes. Like better English VA, confirmation of the idea that he was also being manipulated by the Occuria, being less snotty, etc.
***** hella late
I liked vaan
Main characters, like Vaan, doesn't have to be always the centre of attention in a game you know.
This is such a good game, this game and X has the most interesting world designs I seen.
It's amazing how good this game looks when running on an emulator that could give it the horse power it deserved. It was pretty gritty looking on the PS2.
Agreed!
oh fo sho!! I played the emulated IZJV and it was so sharp and clear, as of writing this, I still have the emulation AND the Steam version of Zodiac Age, but for some reason the legit PC just didn't seem to quite have the sharpness in the reflections on the save crystals etc...that the emulator could...but everything else is awesome!!
Your TV might was older lol this game looked amazing
I remember Me and a buddy spending an entire summer trying to 100% the whole game. Our craziest day was definitely when we spent a few hours mapping out Giruvegan, and making a copy so we both had it. If only i knew of Gamefaqs I would have uploaded onto there for everyone to use. That and the four and a half hour fight with Yiazmat
Thanks for summarizing. Its been a rough day. This took me back to a better time in life
I've never had to rewind so much of a video...This story would be easier to understand with normal names
+aimz210 lmaooo
+aimz210 Brad claims that it was actually Judge Gerry, his evil twin brother, that killed the king and Rick
Holy shit I'm fucking dead.
Andy Solidor of Archades sought to make a pact with King Bill, but the king was assassinated by Kevin.
It would be nice if the judges were more visually distinct from each other.
for once i'm not the only one; is it even worth it at this point? Some part of me refuses to neglect the story
Hands down this is the best FF for me, i just love Ivalice man...the World building, the Atmosphere, the Races, the Environment, the History, the Bestiary entry.... It's all click for me, i hopes future FF will bring back the Ivalice Union
Excellent video!
One of if not the favourite FF for me of all the time! I was what... 18 when this came out... Kept me out of clubs for better or worse :P
Very special game to my heart!
One of the most underrated FF there is.
no, it wasn't a good story, nor an overly good game, if you want an underated ff game, look to crystal chronicles
but, the words overrated and underrated are extremely overused.
Bjorick it has some of the best game mechanics I ever seen in a final fantasy game. Also the hints are fun the world feels like it has a history. I do think his comment is valid.
@@Bjorick Hahah.. did you just compare chrystal chronicles to FFXII?! MADNESS!. The story, characters, replay value, hidden secrets, weapons, armors, gambits, magicks, areas, tips, tricks, depth of this game is INCOMPARABLE to any other FF game.
@@Bjorick AND THE MUSIC FOR GOODNESS SAKE
I'm currently replaying this right now. So much nostalgia!
ha me too . im playing it on my pcsx2 emulator, i figured out how to make the graphics look lovely.
Playing it on PCSX2 as well. I started playing last week, I have about 50 hours logged in on my rerun. Are you playing the vanilla version or the IZJS?
i guess vanilla, after i downloaded the original, i remembered there was the zodiac job system too. how is that one? and also- how r ur graphics looking?
I finished vanilla ages ago so went with IZJS for my rerun. I'd have to say that I find this version more to my liking than vanilla, the tweaks made the game better IMO. As far as the graphics, it's definitely better looking that the PS2 version although I don't know if my settings are configured to give me the best possible visuals. I didn't mess with it too much.
Theres a remaster coming out for the ps4
one of my ever favorite series to date!! WAR OF LIONS, VAGRANT STORY, TACTICS, FF12, FF TACTICS 2!!!!
Pepe la rana española u forgot revenant wings
I've spent over 500 hundred hours on this game. I'm not proud of myself.
I'm proud of you man. Game is legiiiiiiiiiit
Yeah I recall spending an ungodly amount of time on this game just leveling up only to not finish it :sigh: :(
@@tiffmoore8831 I finished it 1 time. 250 hours per playthrough. I tried to get everything in the sky captain's den.
Thank you for the Recap! This FF reminds me of Star Wars a lot!
I tried playing this when it first came out but couldn't get into it. Finished ZA Remaster when that released a few years ago but honestly I couldn't tell you anything about the story or characters. I found it all so forgettable. I'm curious to give it another go but I'm not sure if it'll have any more impact a third time around. I'm going to watch this and see if it can motivate me to give it another go.
Been watching these RECAPitations even though I've played the games.
Good shit mang.
Well, I just watched the whole thing, and that is a pretty fantastic summary. The only mistakes I noticed were that you said mateus was female and the esper of water (male, and esper of ice. Only looks female because he has a captured goddess permanently strapped to him), and that vanat possesses vayne and Bergan. He may possess vayne in the final fight, but before that there is no real possession going on.
But, these are tiny little nitpicks from a git who has 8 playthroughs of the game, and certainly doesn't detract from the overall video. Fantastic, glad I watched.
This was the first FF game I ever owned. Every other I've played has been borrowed or I played on an emulator. At the time, I found the story to be sort of... eh. I don't think I had much of an appreciation for politically-charged stories. While I still don't think the story is amazing or great by any means, I've certainly come to appreciate it a bit more. Because I actually owned a copy of this game, I spent more time playing it than any other FF game before it. I had my few gripes with the story but hoooly shit was I really into the world. It seemed so alive and interesting.
Some of the politics may have gone over my head but I sure felt like the world had a history to it. It also helped that it had a pretty huge world. I recall a few times when I wandered into a cave and wish I hadn't (higher level enemies whooped my ass). Another time, I wandered in a bit too deep and found myself fighting against Adrammelech, the electric flying goat esper. I remember being scared cause I had gone in too deep, had few items, and was desperate for a way out. I managed to beat the boss and get out of there but boy did that experience stick with me. I feel like that's a thing not a lot of JRPGs do exceedingly well: creating a world with a sense of history behind it, a dangerous world that you are thrown into, where stepping into the wrong areas at the wrong time can get you killed.
Anyways, as I'm typing this, I'm patiently waiting for my copy of FFXII HD. I haven't played this game since its release and I'm itching to be immersed in its world once more.
Wish I could heart this comment haha
This is my favorite Final Fantasy game ever and my 2nd favorite RPG of all, best only by Chrono Trigger. This game is amazingly epic and I LOVED the story, the narrative and dialogue. The combat is great and very customizable, the graphics ARE (still) AMAZING, and the voice acting is absolutely divine, every conversation is so natural, everyone takes their time to talk and nothing feels rushed, cringed or force (like it happens every 5 seconds in FF7 Remake)
What your doing is amazing keep it up....you have improved some of these games to me...lol THE MORE YOU KNOW!!
These deserve more views, i've watched numerous RECAPitations and loved every one of them, thank you and hope to see more!
I really like these recapitations, they help me look back on some of my favorite games from the past is a brief, yet compleat story ^^
A good recap. I played it faithfully up to the Pharos and the long playtime to get to that point in the game kept me from trying again to finish it. Thanks for recapping the last third.
I think this game was far too underrated. I think a large reason for that was because it focused heavily on politics, unlike the other games, which are largely driven by a primary romance plot. To me, this game’s story was superb. The characters felt more real and relatable to me than really than in the other games, and I loved the genuine medieval renaissance feel to the world.
While Vaan is generally considered the main character because he’s who you run around as, he really isn’t. It’s just that we’re looking at the story through his perspective. And while he’s a generally bland character, I can understand why the creators chose him. If you’re going to force a player into a vast world with a complex history, lore, politics, and characters, you need someone that is largely ignorant to provide adequate exposition scenes.
You really do a hell of a job with these reacpitations. Congrats man!
I love this game, very underrated
they seriously need to remaster this game for PS4 absolutely loved it.
you're dream is becoming true my friend!
they're remasterng it!
+auron 98
Yeah I know I'm so hyped 😤
it's so cool!!!
And thus your wish was granted!
Dude you are awesome at recaping. So easy to listen and follow even when the story itself is hella complicated
Thank you for doing this game justice with this through Recap.
See? Your intro said it all. All!
Widest open map, depth story for each character, a lot of non-linear sidequests, detailed monster spawn, detailed "auto" battle system (unlike the simplified one used on FFXIII), weather, the dynamic market with some items that can only be around if you sell certain loots, and anything you said.
You can also stupidly read and study all the overly rich detail of everything; items, marks/monster, places, anything had detail. I did, completely, and joyfully, even on my second 140-hours gameplay! It is fun, and I respect the efforts!
And the stupid fans said it is this bad or that bad, fuck them right? Every single Final Fantasy game is an experiment, yes, since the third series.
And when the greatest lover master of fantasy die-hard RPG guru "fans" said this game is a stupid garbage junk trash of rat vomit, SE release the super simplified FFXIII, EAT THAT, FANS!!!
I've played this game and it kinda confused me. this cleared it right up. thank you.
Found your channel today. I like your channel :). Half a year ago I was playing FF12 IZJS and due to studies put it down. But now that summer came I intend to continue my save file. SO hopefully this video of yours would help me catch on with the plot.
Keep it up!
Had to watch this, forgot everything since I stopped playing long ago, and just realized that I was at about the 20min mark of this video in the game. I was supposed to go back and finish it in game but this video summary of the story kept me so interested that I had to finish it right away in video form, thanks for this, such a great ending.
Good Job man! Thanks for giving XII some love!
AWESOME video! Wow... Honestly I have only watched a bit less than half of it (around 14 minutes) as that is as much as I've played (in the Zodiac Age version, but it still fits). But it serves as a GREAT refresher of events, should I wish to continue playing at some point in the future.
I've enjoyed your videos in the past, Oni, but only now subscribed. I wish you great success in the future, and hope you are doing well!
This is my 4th most beloved game in the series. It was the most innovative and enjoyable RPG experience I've had in my childhood. And let's be real, this is the closest thing to a mature story this series has ever had.
cant wait for the remake! easily one of the funnest FF games ever
Is it just me, or does Final Fantasy XII have a few parallels with the story of Star Wars?
Bahamut = Death Star
Cid & Balthier = I am your father, although Balthier already knew, so its more Ben and Han than Luke and Anakin
Vayne(controlled by Venat) = Vader(Palpatine)
Ashe = Padme
Rasler's Ghost = Force Ghost
Josh Bautista Ashe is Leia
I felt the same way when I played this game...it’s a bit of a story ripoff of Star Wars.
Nabradia is also clearly based on Naboo, especially the opening scene.
Then you've got the presence of bounty hunters, the Judges who are all superficially reminiscent of Darth Vader, the resistance the Empire etc
This is the "Star Wars" of the FF series, without a doubt.
strahl = millennium falcon
balthier = han solo
fran = chewbacca
gabranth = darth vader
vaan & penelo = r2d2 & c3p0
Gotta love how grounded the Story relatively is compared to most other FFs!
The fact this game came out only 8 years after 7 speaks volumes for the game making prowess of square
This telling of the story is flawless!
Whats your psn name so i can add you
Actually: Mateas is male (and thus a he, not a she, or at least some bizarre divine intersex.) In rebellion with the gods, he captured a goddess and strapped to his chest as armor. He took her in hopes that the gods would spare him so as to save her, but instead they sealed them both, cursing the goddess to eternal imprisonment. Movements of the goddess's head during her appearances in FFXII and Revenant Wings seem to indicate that Mateus and his captured goddess have become one entity.
God I love this game. Every little thing is dripping with backstory!
I come back to this video sometimes, to remember such an amazing game
Love the BGM Battle on Big Bridge :D
I like the story, although Vaan was quite a bland character, the protagonist should have been Balthier or Basch.
Kras I take basch, Balthier, and Ashe for main character over vaan any day
Basch was supposed to be the main protagonist, but square felt that a man in his late thirties wouldn't go over well with fans so Vaan was conceved as a replacement very late in the games development if I'm remembering correctly.
Mustadio Bunansa Plus they wanted to tell the story from a different perspective, in this case, vaan is the character with no significant, hes just a character who witness whats going on.
Like they kinda did with Nier gestalt & replicant. People may not like the game mechanics but the characters are likeable and the music is a masterpiece.
the supposedly sequel was going to have basch as the protagonist but was later cancelled
Vaan never put hands on basch for killing his brother (in the beginning of the game)
from being a ffxi addict this is my favorite FF. loved it when it came out, it knocked ff6 off my #1 list. always wished they used this combat system for future games too
Thanks for this video! I've been coming back to it multiple times between play sessions to make sure I didn't forget anything, going further in the video every time I watch. I guess I'm about 2/3 into the story now! It's hard stopping every time to avoid spoilers haha
I know its an old video, but what would have been nice is if you spelled out some of these names and places on screen. I didn't understand half of what was said since the names are all unusual and are hard to keep track of if you didn't already know them.
This game is so much better than it's often given credit for. I remember back when it first came out and a lot of people hated the combat system, but I always thought it was pretty engaging and refreshing as it's cool to see such ingenuity.
The graphics both in-game and during cutscenes to this day are dazzling to behold and although I'm sure some would disagree with me I actually like Vaan as a character even though he gets a lot of flack since his involvement isn't as a singular protagonist.
I think it's pretty cool that he was one of many protagonists as opposed to his story being paramount over the other characters journeying with him. If anything he was the guy tagging along with more prominent characters and I thought that was kind of cool.
I also like that he isn't your traditional hero, starting off as a pickpocketing street thief forced into petty crime to make ends meet due to the injustices of the world around him and the loss of the only family he had left.
As for other aspects of the game I like, I thought the emphasis of political scheming and the characters therein competing for control were all fascinating as I love seeing that kind of intrigue being used to further develop the setting and the plot. There's a lot to love in this game.
Replaying older games has thought me i really didnt understand much of war and politics.....tis only years later i fully appraciate the level of detail put into this game.
Great work on this. Great great work.
do vagrant story please.
The stone that vaan acquired in the treasure room wasn't Nethicite. It was Goddess Magicite.
Holy shit. I didn't realized this was THAT complicated.
im not sure why everyone knocks Vaan. He's actually cool and beautifully voice-acted. Unlike Tidus.
becouse he is not important to the overall story, some people also find him annoying for some reason. what people fail to realise is that vaan is more of a viewpoint character, and final fantasy fans often don't see the beauty in playing as more of a support character. I loved that... also, this game is not very liked in general, and haters often are very vocal about their dislikes, and search for every little thing to nitpick on, so that also doesn't help vaans popularity.
+HushedTerror balthier was the main character lol
+Eddie Iler I disagree, Ashe is the main character. Vaan is a very appropriate viewpoint character as being just a tag along. He is the most overpowered of the lot, however, as a strange consequence of also being the viewpoint lead. Moby Dick has a non-consequential viewpoint narrator as well.....
+Eddie Iler I only got annoyed by Penelo. Vaan may be a tag along, but she is tagging along because of a tag along!
Charlie Wood lol I think the game let's it's essentially pick who we like as the lead. Plus balthier said it at the end anyway. Lol
I loved the esper mechanic of this game its refreshing to have new summons and the gambit system/job system stressed a new type of thought process for combat.
This was my favorite game during the time
If you're looking to get the story on games you never got to play, this is a great way to catch up and sometimes get the urge to want to actually play the game lol
I saw my brother completing this game in both japanese and english versions.
It was the only FF of the PS2 generation I never played. I feel like I missed a lot.
I'm sure aiming to play FFXII in a near future.
Best Final Fantasy game I have ever played. Just recently started playing again since I have some free time - but this time I'm trying out international zodiac job system.
I just remember this game being INSANELY long
You do good work, sir. Much appreciated!
I played the game but only until the "bunny village" (or whatever the name is) then my banking work got crazy and was never able to play it again. This was 8 years ago so its great to have some kind of closure to my unfinished game.
Thanks for the video!
I really enjoyed this game but can't remember any of it for the life of me. Glad to see this.
Who remembers Final Fantasy: Tactics Advance? The hanheld gem is also set in Ivalice and has judges.
Vaan is really annoying at first and a lot of people, usually those without a ton of experience with the game, feel like he steals the spotlight as the "main character" from others they think would be more interesting. On a first playthrough the main words that spring to mind for most of us when thinking of Vaan are "why" and "ugh." He seems useless, vestigial, annoying. You don't know why he's there. It seems like he doesn't even know why he's there.
In many ways though, that's Vaan's character. He's lost. He's an orphan whose family and future were taken for him by poor circumstance and then subsequently beaten down by a military occupation. He's stuck in a dead-end life with the only thing keeping him going being the others in the same situation who look up to him and a distant, seemingly unreachable dream of one day escaping from it all to ride the wind as a sky pirate.
One of the most important things to remember about Vaan when critiquing his character is that he's a kid. He's 17, he's a fucking baby by real world standards. And I feel he's pretty accurately portrayed in this regard. Think back about how shitty you were at life when you were a kid his age, even if you thought you were cool at the time. If you're not far enough away from it yet to tell, give it some time. Vaan is impressionable, indecisive, unsure of his course of actions, and when he tries to be impulsive he often chooses the option that ends badly or gets him in trouble. He's a noob. He kinda sucks. But give him a break, he's a kid man. In fact, it's kind of a refreshing change from the typical generic JRPG protagonist who acts like he's 25 but oh nah man, it's totally a 16 year old pulling all this badass shit and having the answer to everything.
This is how you see most of the other party members regard him. He says or does something dumb and they're just like, "smh Vaan" and move on, because they kind of understand. Vaan's still growing up. One of the coolest things is how Balthier is a role model to him, more or less the actualized version of the person he's always dreamed about being.
Now as for his role in the story it's been confused and mixed up a lot, even by the Squenix people (Ashe should have been the Dissidia rep). The simplest comparison is to go with Star Wars because of the myriad of other similarities there already are. Vaan is the R2-D2 of FFXII. He's the little guy that goes around discovering menial tidbits and unraveling threads and accidentally setting huge events into motion that the other "main players" act upon.
(For reference to the rest of the cast: Penelo is C3-P0, Basch is Obi-Wan, Gabranth is Darth Vader, Ashe is a combination of both Luke and Leia, Balthier is Han, and Fran is sexy Chewbacca)
Anyways, I think the major sticking point that got so many people mad about Vaan being chosen as the "main character" is that he's the one you control in towns. This is an issue of bias taking hold. In the majority the previous FF games, you controlled the main character on the field screen in basically every area, barring a few exceptions where they temporarily left the party. So people inherently applied this to FFXII under the assumption that the game had to follow the same rules. This is not the case. The reason you control Vaan in towns is not because he's the most important character or primary focus of the story, but because he is performing his role in the party of the streetear, the information gatherer, the envoy to the common people, the errand boy. Think about the activities you actually perform while being forced to control Vaan. You're running around talking to normal NPCs, gathering tidbits, picking up sidequests, going shopping for new items and equipment. This is the kind of busywork that would be relegated to Vaan, it's what he's good at. Furthermore, think about the other members of the party. Several of them are famous, and all four of the adults have prices on their heads. They would be laying low and keeping to themselves in these big cities, but even in the neutral areas it's more an issue of them simply not being bothered with doing that kind of thing. They all have bigger things on their plates that Vaan doesn't, and Vaan is happy to take care of this stuff as a way of being useful.
And once you get literally anywhere that isn't one of these towns you can control whomever you want to. And in the overwhelming majority of cutscenes where the story and important conversations happen, including the ones in towns, Vaan very much takes a backseat with most of his interaction amounting to more or less the same as an interjectory bleep-bloop-bloop from Artoo
Vaan (and Penelo) represent the future. Potential. Basch, Gabranth, and Fran are the players of yesterday. Ashe, Balthier, and Vayne are the players of today. Vaan, Penelo, and Larsa are the players of tomorrow. And the reason Vaan is so integral to the party isn't necessarily because of anything he says or does, or the tasks he performs like I outlined above: it's simply his presence. Vaan creates context. He helps Ashe maintain perspective of where her true duty as a queen lies, of what it really means to rule. Like I said, Vaan is impressionable. Ashe's entire journey has been colored by revenge, of wanting to pay back the Empire for the terrible wrongs it's wrought upon her and all of Dalmasca. It's what drew Vaan to join her quest in the first place. He's suffered as she has for the same reasons. And this all comes to a head atop the Pharos Aerie, where she makes the choice that defines all of history to come.
As Gabranth faces them down and goads them into taking vengeance on him for his murder of Ashe's father and Vaan's brother, Ashe feels all her hatred and rage seething within her and wants nothing more than to strike him down, take his life, and then move on to the rest of Archadia next.
And then she looks over at Vaan and sees her own reflection.
And she understands.
She sees this dumb kid who's been looking up to his queen on the entire journey, who's mirrored her own desire for revenge. "Dalmasca does not forget kindness, nor ill deed done. With sword in hand she aids her allies. Sword in hand, she lays to rest her foes. This nethicite I hold must be my sword. I will avenge those who have died. And the Empire will know remorse." Ashe realizes in this single moment that she's inadvertently been teaching Vaan to perpetuate the cycle of hatred forward forever, and that by doing this she's setting the tone for the future of Dalmasca. It's instantly clarified, and she knows what she has to do. She lets go.
FFXII is ultimately a game about letting go of the past and starting anew, of not letting past deeds weigh down one's actions, of learning to forgive and rebuild a new future. Ashe finally comes to understand that her hatred brings her nothing but sorrow, and she instead offers forgiveness. And Vaan changes alongside her, because she's taught him to see it as well.
Vaan's day was yet to come in FFXII. He was kind of a nerd. We see only a glint of potential in him. But he learned a lot over the events of the game. It ends with his dream becoming a reality and taking to the skies. Now one of the coolest things in the entire FF series is when you play FFTA2 after FFXII, and Vaan and Penelo show up older. Vaan has transformed. He's confident and cool, a bona fide sky pirate. They intentionally make his first line to the protagonist the same as Balthier's first line to him in FFXII. The transformation is complete. He's all grown up. It's so fucking cool man. And it was all because the real main characters of FFXII gave some dumb kid a chance, kept him around so he could follow his dreams.
tl;dr: Give Vaan a break , he's just a fuckin kid. He's trying his best, and when he grows up he'll be cooler than you are.
21:16 Two NPCs having fun at the beach
oh, please do Revenant Wings! i love your recapitations!
PLEASEEEE make a what happened in world of final fantasy, one of the most underrated ff games ever
Great videos man...You are doing someting that i only thought about for years...esume longs stories so you could recap and undestand the parts of the game that were kinda foggy to comprehension. Thanks a lot and congrats. I`ll do my best to share your work around.
This is my first Final Fantasy game, And though it’s a bit difficult, it’s still one hell of a ride!
Dude. You could lock me in a room with a typewriter for a million years and I wouldn’t be able to write a story this good
OMG the music is EPIC
I need to replay this game. it's been so long
there is a ps4 remake coming out
store.na.square-enix.com/product/404023/final-fantasy-xii-the-zodiac-age-ps4 look up final fantasy xii zodiac age, for more information.
Remaster, not a remake.
for the typical persons understanding it really doesn't matter, which it is its basically the saething performance wise.
It does actually. People might get disappointed if they think it's a remake.
my god, ... all that time playing and i didnt reach the mines of that glowy stone stuff yet. The story is MASSIVE
I've played FF12 more than any other Final Fantasy, including 7 and 9, and after about eight or so 100% Order of Ambrosia runs. I still have absolutely no idea wtf even happens in regard to story. All I know about the story is that Balthier is awesome, Ashe is power-hungry or something, and Vaan and Penelo have no real reason to exist.